Binders and materials made therewith

A method of making a glass fiber thermal or acoustical residential building insulation product, wherein the method comprises:

• spraying a substantially formaldehyde-free, uncured aqueous binder solution onto a mat of glass fibers during production of the thermal or acoustical residential building insulation product such that, once the aqueous binder solution is in contact with the glass fibers, residual heat from the glass fibers and flow of air through the mat evaporates water from the aqueous binder solution to produce a binder coated mat, the aqueous binder solution comprising:
• Maillard reactants including (i) an amine reactant and (ii) a carbohydrate reactant, wherein the carbohydrate reactant is selected from one or more carbohydrate reactants having one or more reducing sugars, one or more carbohydrate reactants which yield one or more reducing sugars in situ under thermal curing conditions, and combinations thereof and wherein the percent by dry weight of the reducing sugar from the carbohydrate reactant with respect to the total weight of reactants in the aqueous binder solution ranges from about 73% to about 92% and wherein the percent by dry weight of the amine reactant with respect to the total weight of reactants in the aqueous binder solution ranges from about 8% to about 27%;
• transferring the binder coated mat to and through a curing oven;
• heating the binder coated mat in the curing oven and curing the binder so as to produce the thermal or acoustical residential building insulation product, wherein i) heated air is passed through the mat to cure the binder in contact with the glass fibers, ii) flights above and below the mat compress the mat to give the insulation product a predetermined thickness and surface finish, and iii) fibrous glass having a cured, rigid binder matrix emerges from the curing oven so as to produce the insulation product in the form of a batt with said glass fibers being present in the insulation product in the range from about 75% to about 99% by weight;
• and
• compressing the batt for packaging and shipping to a thickness of less than about 90% of its end of line thickness,
• such that the method produces an insulation product which, when used to provide thermal insulation, has an R-value in the range from about 3 to about 38.